Faithfully Repurposing Historic Buildings: A Case Study

Faithfully repurposing historic buildings is an exciting architectural challenge that requires meeting the exceptional community value and weight of history head-on. That’s why here at G Johns & Sons we were delighted to bring our expertise to the redevelopment project at Grade II Totteridge Park in North London, providing the fixtures and fittings for 10 refurbished apartments and 2 newbuild cottages.   

The manor house at Totteridge Park dates back to the 17th century when it was built as a hunting lodge by prominent Whig politician the 1st Viscount William Bateman. Following Viscount Bateman have been a string of decorated and distinguished tenants over the subsequent centuries, including a Lord Chief Justice in the 1750s and confectionery magnate, Sir Albert Barratt, in the early 20th century. 

However, more recently the apartments had fallen into disrepair prompting the need for redevelopment, while two newbuild cottages were also added to the site that replaced a wing of the original house which was damaged by fire. Ensuring the entire project fit the aesthetic of the original house was paramount, requiring meticulous attention to detail by combining period features with top-of-the-line ironmongery that met modern standards and specifications. 

G Johns & Sons stunning range of antique pewter fixtures and fittings were perfect for the job. Pewter as a material strongly evokes opulence and heritage and our range is a fine example of how our unique manufacturing techniques add further detail to the natural charm of metals. The breadth and quality of our pewter range meant we could fully furnish the entire site with everything required including door handles, fasteners, letter plates, escutcheons and more. 

Jeremy Barltrop, registered architectural ironmonger and Director at G Johns, said of the project “It’s both an enormous privilege and responsibility to be asked to contribute to developments with such historical and local significance. 

The challenge of adaptively reusing heritage buildings appropriately is one that fascinates architectural ironmongers like myself. 

Naturally, I’m delighted the developers at Totteridge Park chose to use our range of pewter products in their extensive redevelopment project as it's a range that is totally faithful to the history and aesthetic of the wider site. 

Furthermore, it represents an additional vote of confidence in our ironmongery and reinforces my belief that we have the perfect range of products to suit any project. 

To think that G Johns has played its part in the restoration and preservation of one of our country’s finest historical buildings is a source of enormous pride for me personally.”